Mobile brattice machine and ramp for mines



March 13, 1956 1 F, JY 2,738,179

MOBILE BRATTICE MACHINE AND RAMP FOR MINES ATTORNEY J. F. JoY

Mmh 1s, 195e MOBILE BRATTICE MACHINE AND RAMP PQR MINES Filed March 10,1953 5 Sneets-Sheet 2 o Y o o O O O s m Q INVENTOR JOSEPH F. JOY

ATTORNEY March 13, 1956 J. F. JOY 2,738,179

MOBILE BRATTICE MACHINE AND RAMPFOR MINES Filed March 10, 1955 3S'neecs-Shexef, 3

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ATTORNEYl United States Patent O MOBILE BRATTICE MACHINE AND RAMP FRMINES Joseph F. Joy, Pittsburgh, Pa., assigner to Joy ManufacturingCompany, Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania ApplicationMarch 10, 1953, Serial No. 341,538

4 Claims. (CI. 262-34) This invention relates to mining equipment andparticularly to a combined ventilator or brattice curtain and rampmechanism especially designed for use in underground coal mines. v

in my copending application Serial No. 296,323, tiled I une 30, 1952, aIbore and sprag method of mining is disclosed wherein special bratticemachines and stoppings are employed to control the ventilation in themines, and the present invention resides particularly in the bratticemachine which herein embodies a ventilator or 'brattice curtain and rampmounted on a mobile base. The present invention contemplatesimprovements over known types of brattice equipment in that the bratticecurtain is readily mobile and is power operated and adjusted and hasassociated therewith a ramp providing a trackway whereby other portablemining equipment may pass over the ramp across the brattice machinewithout the need of 'bodily maneuvering or repositioning of the machine.

An object of this invent-ion is to provide an improved brattice machineespecially designed for use in controlling the ventilation in anunderground coal mine. Another object is `to provide an improvedbrattice curtain mechanism which is readily mobile and power operatedand adjusted. Yet another object is to provide an improved bratticemachine having a ramp associated therewith whereby other pieces ofportable mining equipment may pas-s across the machine without need forbodily removing or repositioning of the latter. These and other objectsand advantages of the invention will, however, more fully appear.

In the accompanying drawings there is shown for purposes of illustrationone form which the invention may assume in practice.

In these drawings:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of the improved mobile bratticemachine, showing `the same in operating position in a mine passageway.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the machine shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged central longitudinal vertical section taken online 3 3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary cross section taken on line 4 4 ofFig. 2, showing a portion of the crawler base and the ramp plate pivot.

Fig. 5 is a detail vertical section taken on line 5 5 of Fig. 3, showingone of the tilting cylinders for the chamber plate.

Fig. 6 is a detail vertical section taken on line 6 6 of Fig. 3, showingthe pivot for the swingable curtain frame.

Fig. 7 is an enlarged cross sectional view taken on line 7 7 of Fig. l,showing a portion of the curtain drive.

Fig. 8 is a detail section taken on line 8 8 of Fig. 9, and cuttingthrough the curtain with the latter in lowered position.

Fig. 9 is an enlarged longitudinal vertical section taken on line 9 9 ofFig. 2, illustrating a portion of the curtain structure and its guide.

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Fig. l0 is a diagrammatic view illustrating `the hydraulic fluid systemof the machine.

The bore and sprag method of mining disclosed in the copendingapplication Serial No. 296,323 'above referred to embodies parallelhorizontal bores extending inside of and parallel with the coal face andconnected to a right angle panel entry or passageway and one of thesebores is designated 1 while the panel entry or passageway is designated2. To maintain the necessary rate of air flow at the working face of themine certain of the parallel bores may be blocked oil or obstructed asby the brattice curtains of the special lbrattice machine of the presentinvention. The parallel horizontal 'bores 1 may have their bottoms 3 ata slightly higher level than the lloor 4 of the panel entry, and ashoulderlike vertical surface 5 is provided at the juncture of a borewith the entry, as shown in Fig. 1. In order to permit auxiliary miningor service equipment to move from the entry past the brattice machineinto the bore and vice versa, the brattice machine may have a rampembodied therein providing a trackway to permit ready passage of suchequipment over the machine base between the bore Vand entry.

The Ibrattice machine and ramp comprises a mobile unit generallydesignated 6 and includes a mobile base herein desirably a crawler base7 having a frame 8 mounted on endless crawler treads 9 of a conventionaldesign. Pivotally mounted at 10 to swing about a horizontal transverseaxis on the crawler frame is a swingable curtain frame 11 on which abrattice curtain 12 is guided for raising and lowering movements, andextending between the crawler treads on the frame 8 is an inclined ramp13 provided with a tiltable ramp plate 14 pivoted at 15 on the baseframe. Reversible power jacks 16, desirably in the form of hydrauliccylinders, extend between the sides ofthe base frame and the sides ofthe curtain frame 11 for swinging the latter in vertical planes aboutits pivot between its raised operative position shown in full lines inFig. l and its lowered transport position shown in broken lines in thatligure. Similar reversible power jacks 17, likewise in the form othydraulic cylinders, are connected between the sides of the base and thepivoted ramp plate 14 for tilting the latter in vertical planes a'boutits pivot 15. The ramp plate 14 is swingable downwardly into engagementwith the iloor of the entry. The power jacks 16 and 17 are operable tohold the curtain frame and ramp plate firmly in adjusted positions.

The curtain frame 11 is swingable upwardly about its pivot on thecrawler base into an upright position wherein it abuts the shoulder 5 ofthe juncture of the bore with the entry and the curtain frame isdesirably curved or outwardly bulged at 18 to fit closely against the`adjacent curved sidewall ot' the entry, as shown in Fig. l. lournalledin bearings 19 (Fig. 7) at the upper portion of the curtain frame 11 isa horizontal transversely extending shaft Ztl to which a curtain roller21 (see also Figures 3 and 9) is secured. Mounted at the sides of thecurtain frame are reversible motors 22, lherein desirably conventionalhydraulic motors, having worms 23 fixed to their power shafts and theseworms mesh with worm wheels 24 respectively secured to the opposite endsof the roller shaft 20. The curtain is of exible, articulated, metalstrip construction composed of a series of pivotally connected or hingedmetal interlocking plates or strips and is secured at its upper end at25 (Fig. 9) to the roller 21 and at its lower end to a weighted guide 26which is slidingly guided at its ends in suitable guides 27 (see alsoFig. 8) provided by the side frames 28 of the curtain frame 11. Thus themotors 22 may be operated in unison to drive the curtain roller ineither direction to eiect raising and lowering of the brattice curtain.

Now referring to the hydraulic uid system shown diagrammatically in Fig.10, it will be noted that a motor 30, desirably an electric motorcarried by one of the tread frames, may effect drive of a conventionalliquid pump 31 which has its suction side connected by a conduit 32 to aliquid tank 33 and its discharge side connected by conduit 34 to thepressure passage of a valve box 35 of a conventional control valvemechanism. The discharge passage of the valve box is connected by aconduit 36 back to the tank. The valve box has usual parallel boresreceiving control valves 37, 38 and 39 each having an operating handle.The bore containing the valve 37 is connected by branched conduits 40and 41 to the opposite ends of the swing cylinders 16 for the curtainframe, while the bore containing the valve 38 is connected lby branchedconduits 4Z and 43 to the opposite sides of the reversible hydraulicmotors Z2. The bore containing the valve 39 is connected by branchedconduits 44 and 45 to the opposite ends of the hydraulic tilt -cylinders17 for the ramp plate. Thus by properly operating the control valves thecurtain frame and the ramp plate may be swung in opposite directionsabout their pivots and the curtain drive motors 22 may be operated ineither of opposite directions to raise and lower the curtain as desired.The valve may be positioned to trap liquid within the hydrauliccylinders and the motors tirn'xly to lock the parts in adjustedposition, in a well known manner.

The auxiliary service or mining equipment which may travel between the`bore and the panel entry may assume various forms such as a mine orservice car indicated in dotted lines at 50 in Fig. 1 and this car mayhave its wheels 51 travel along the curved bottom wall of the bore 1, asshown in Fig. 1. It desired, a conventional electronic control device orcontrol switch designated 52 in Fig. 1 may be mounted on the curtaintrame, on the bore wall or otherwise mounted, so that when it isactuated by the approaching car 50 or other equipment the control valvefor the curtain drive motors 22 may be actuated to effect automaticraising of the brattice curtain to permit the mine or service car orother equipment to pass through the then open center of the curtainframe and along the trackway provided by the ramp 13 of the crawlerbase. As the auxiliary mining equipment passes over the ramp the curtainmay be automatically lowered. Thus the mining equipment which passesthrough the bore between the latter and the panel entry may move acrossthe 'brattice machine without the need of bodily maneuvering orrepositioning of the machine. A control device 53 on the base controlsthe pump motor. sired to move the brattice machine from one place toanother about the mine the curtain frame may vbe swung downwardly intoits lowered transport position on the crawler base and the crawlertreads may be operated in a known manner to effect propulsion andsteering of the machine.

As a result of this invention an improved brattice machine especiallydesignated for use in controlling the ventilation of an underground coalmine is provided which is not only readily mobile but which is alsopower operated and controlled. By the provision of the swingable framefor the brattice curtain and the power adjusting means therefor, thecurtain frame may be quickly adjusted into upright operating position,and the curtain When it is dedrive motors may be operated to raise andlower the 'brattice curtain as desired. By incorporating the ramp withinthe brattice machine it is possible for the mining equipment to passbetween the bore and the panel entry without needed bodily repositioningof the machine, simply by raising the brattice curtain to permit theequipment to pass through the open center of the frame and over theramp. These and other advantages of the invention will be clearlyapparent to those skilled in the art.

While there is in this application specifically described one form whichthe invention may assume in practice, it will be understood that thisform of the same is shown for purposes of illustration and that theinvention may be modied and embodied in various other forms withoutdeparting from its spirit or the scope of the appended claims.

What l claim as new and desired to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. in a mobile brattice machine for use in a mine passageway, comprisinga mobile base adapted to travel over the tloor of the mine, an uprightopen centered frame arranged transversely of said base and having asurface about its margin engageable with an end wall surrounding thepassageway in relatively tight contact therewith, and a brattice curtainguided for raising and lowering on said upright frame to open and closethe open center of said frame, said frame cooperating with said curtainwhen the latter is closed to provide a closure for said passageway toobstruct any flow of air through said passageway, `and means foradjusting said curtain relative to said frame partially or completely toopen the center of said frame to regulate air flow through saidpassageway.

2. A brattice machine as set forth in claim 1 wherein said curtain frameis adjustably mounted on said base and means is provided for adjustingsaid frame from its upright operating position downwardly into a loweredtransport position with respect to said base.

3. A brattice machine as set forth in claim 1 wherein said base has aframe over which equipment traveling through the mine passageway maypass when said curtain is adjusted to open the center of said uprightframe while the latter remains in tight contact with the end wall ofsaid passageway.

4. A 'brattice machine as set forth in claim 3 wherein control means isprovided actuated by such equipment traveling in the mine passageway sothat as the equipment approaches the machine said adjusting means forsaid curtain is automatically operated to effect opening of said curtainto permit passage of such equipment through the open center of saidupright frame and over said base frame.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 160,436Johnson Mar. 2, 1875 284,454 Mallory Sept. 4, 1883 1,419,357 Carter June13, 1922 1,442,769 Jackson et al. Jan. 16, 1923 2,462,868 Ives Mar. 1,1949 2,513,152 Delivuk June 27, 1950 2,564,067 Karp Aug. 14, 1951

